And we came back to this area after several years; this is the village of Cour Cheverny!We have great memories of family visits, and I gather strenght to come back with the boys, my Dad and our dog Rex! The village of Cour-Cheverny is located in the Loir-et-Cher dept no, 41 of the Centre-Val de Loire region of my belle France. The town is located about 10 km from Blois and about 15 km from the Château de Chambord. (see posts). Sitting about one km from the more famous Cheverny! (see posts) Therefore, let me tell you a bit about the Church Saint Aignan of Cour Cheverny !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.
We know from historians that this church dedicated to Saint-Aignan was built in the 11C or 12C at the latest ,The Church Saint Aignan appears from 1145 among the possessions of the Abbey of Bourgmoyen de Blois. More exactly, it is about a priory – cure ,mentioned in various papal Bulls,The Bourgmoyen abbey, also called a monastery of Sainte-Marie then belonged to the archdiocese of Chartres. It was founded in 696 by secular canons who were replaced by regulars in 1123. The construction of the church therefore corresponded to the time when the regular monks of Saint-Augustin settled in Cour-Cheverny. These various historical elements are thus likely to support the thesis according to which the Church Saint Aignan would have been part of a monastery. Unfortunately, we do not find any trace in our time of the existence of such a monastery even thus architecturally, the church having atypical architectural elements which suggest that it was originally a monastery church.
The two portals from the 12C,and you see the transformations carried out in the 16-17C, which gave the church its present appearance, very different from the original one. Part of the primitive arches was widened, the central nave received rib vaults placed much lower , bearing the date of 1609, the last three bays of the aisle have been transformed and especially a bas-side was built in mirror ,which highlights the narrowness of the other two naves. Outside, the small bell tower was added in the 17C.
The 12C Church Saint Aignan revised in the 16-17C, is made up of a nave of three spans, two aisles, a semi-circular apse, of arches in thirds, of vaults of sweets with key of 1609, from a 13C western portal, of a high frame on the central bell tower. The Clock was born on April 22, 1851 when the restoration of the campanile which dates from the 12C and it is overcome with a large ball. The gable was restored on the facade and place a stone cross at the top. A beautiful piece with respectable dimensions, as it was fashionable at that time, 96 cm long, 46 cm wide, its pendulum measures one meter and beats the second, its oscillation has a total length of 16 cm, the height of falling of its weights is 10.30 m. It has a 6 -day power reserve. Its ringtone is on the big bell by a long transmission ranging from the campanile to the bell tower.
Horace Vernet, painter who made the galerie des Batailles or Battles gallery at the Palace of Versailles; came to restore a table of the church kindly while he was staying with friends in Cour- Cheverny in 1873. The painter Renouard was born shortly before the installation of the clock in a house near the church.
The local journal blog la Grenouille on the church : https://lagrenouillememoire.blogspot.com/2017/04/eglise-de-cour-cheverny.html
The Blois Chambord tourist office on Cour Cheverny : https://www.bloischambord.co.uk/on-the-agenda/our-towns-villages/towns-and-villages/cour-cheverny-1538130
The town of Cour Cheverny on its history/heritage : https://mairie-cour-cheverny.fr/du-cote-des-loisirs/histoire-et-patrimoine/
There you go folks, a dandy ride into a wonderful Cour Cheverny, we love it ,the valley of the kings of France! There is so much to see here along, you can spend a lifetime, me I am trying harder..Stay tune for more in my blog. Again, hope you enjoy this post on the Church Saint Aignan of Cour Cheverny !!! as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 